


Sickness

by captain_othersider



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: Gen, Ostagar, The Blight (Dragon Age)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 23:01:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17886761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captain_othersider/pseuds/captain_othersider
Summary: In which the Blight really does bring people - and dogs - together.





	Sickness

Ariel Mahariel is living on borrowed time, and he knows that damn well; the world won’t let him forget even for a second.

It’s the blackening veins on his arms and around the eyes, the ghostly pallor of his reflection in a river; running his fingers over the curve of a silverite dagger and pulling away with a hiss of pain because the metal _burns_ ; it’s the constant thirst, his throat burning and dry no matter how much he drinks; it’s the little more effort it takes him to draw a bow, barely noticeable at first but more and more demanding as the days go by. By the time they reach Ostagar, every shot draws a pained groan out of him, but he forces his failing body into practice still, ignoring Duncan’s warnings.

A few days into the journey, he’s realized the other Wardens became a constant presence in his thoughts, nauseating and faint, but impossible to ignore. Duncan told him it was natural for a tainted creature to sense Wardens; they are immune to the Blight, and therefore have somewhat of a bond with it, allowing darkspawn to sense them just like their kin. From then on, the feeling only grew stronger, to the point where staying near the Wardens’ side of the camp for long is now straight up unbearable - and so he crawls out of his tent, leans on a nearby pillar to steady himself for a moment, and shambles away from the camp, every step a struggle, but also a relief as the waves of muddy noise wash away from his thoughts slowly.

Ostagar is full of humans, mostly. Some of them wear armor, some of them wear robes; a lot of them are speaking as he passes by, and their voices mix and amplify inside his head. It’s irritating at first; he snaps at a few passerby probably unaware of his existence until that very moment, not bothering to stop and listen to their reactions, feeling the stares on his back as he continues his way forward. He feels a walking corpse in this sea of people, and, in a way, he is one.

He’s almost crossed the entire camp when the sickening presence tugs at his mind once again - but not from the Wardens’ tents behind his back. It’s somewhere in front of him, much smaller and more… _familiar_ , for some reason.

His legs carry him towards the source before Ariel can even stop to ponder the situation.

He walks faster and faster, until his surroundings blur and only the presence remains, growing clearer and clearer - until he is cut off by a tall fence. He walks around, finds a gate, tries it; it’s locked.

There is a low growl coming from within, interrupted by fits of heavy wheezing.

Ariel takes a few steps back, considers the fence’s height and takes one more; then, he runs forward, and just a step away from the obstacle, he jumps.

His body protests, stiff and weak, but Ariel remembers the _vir bor’assan_ , and orders himself: _bend_.

His fingers catch the fence’s edge just barely, but enough to hold on; it takes him a few attempts to pull himself up, kicking the wall and sliding back down, until he finally tumbles over and to the other side, landing onto a thin pile of hay spread across the ground.

There’s a stench in the air, blood and vomit and sickness; the growling is close now. He looks up, and sees an animal standing over him - a dog, hunched, baring its teeth. It is the source of the smell - and the presence.

It barks hoarsely, and lunges forward, teeth snapping inches away from his face - then immediately withdraws, whining and lowering its head to the ground. It’s sick. Not hostile, Ariel realizes, just scared.

It begins to growl again, scratching furiously at the ground, and the sound resonates in his bones along with the presence. Ariel rolls over, pushes himself to sit; the dog falls silent, and then slowly sits as well, staring at him across the pen.

Ariel exhales, slowly; the breath burns his throat, and his tongue feels like a piece of tree bark inside his mouth. The dog lets out a whine; it understands.

It takes a step towards him, then another one; he shuffles closer on his knees, and they meet in the middle. The dog nuzzles his shoulder, smearing him with the foul smell; he does not mind. Cautiously, Ariel brushes over the short fur, and the animal doesn’t recoil. The dog sits down again and allows him to pet it; it barks happily, and it’s black-stained tongue lolls out.

Ariel laughs quietly; what comes out is more of a cough, though.

“Look at us,” he mutters. “Couple of blighted bastards. Why didn’t they kill you?”

The dog tilts its head to the side with a whine - almost as if it’s understood his words. Maybe it did?

“Not that I think they _should_ kill you,” Ariel assures it. A smile crosses his face. “Maybe they should make you a Grey Warden too. You could be Ser - hey, what’s your name, really?…”

At this moment, the gate that has previously failed him swings open.

“Hey, you! What in the bloody - “ begins a gruff male voice, and then halts abruptly. “You calmed him down,” the stranger says, much quieter - unbelieving of his own words.

Giving the dog one last affectionate scratch on the side, Ariel stands up and turns to the newcomer; a human, lightly armored, no weapons but a simple dagger on his belt.

“Who are you?” Ariel asks.

“I’m the kennel master here,” the man says. “I was just about to… Well, nevermind. Maker’s breath - I can’t believe he didn’t tear you to pieces!”

“He’s blighted,” Ariel says. “He suffers. Why don’t you put him down?”

“…You’re not from ‘round here, are you? That,” the kennel master gestures to the dog, “Is a mabari. Finest war hound you’ll find in Thedas, maybe the entire world. You don’t just give up on a dog like that - and besides, he can still get better. I just need one more component… You can only find it in the Wilds, though.”

“I’ll get it for you,” he says. The kennel master looks him over, frowning:

“Say, elf - shouldn’t you be in the infirmary yourself?”

“My name is Ariel,” he says, “And I am a Grey Warden. Now, tell me about that component.”


End file.
